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Distraction-Free Writing Software

Writing is a very stimulating activity that keeps our brain fresh and creative, practising the usage of words to construct a bigger message can convey a heavy creative thinking. What better than making our words flow without the hectic surroundings? Screen-wise speaking of course :). In this post I’ll give you some distraction-free software to be even more inspired and calm while passing down your messages into the computer; these programs are good for book authors, journalists, bloggers, students and I can just think of more examples.

It doesn’t matter what operating system you use, you will definitively get one here! But if you don’t know what you can expect, let me tell you in simple words: A full-screen window where you will be able to focus on what you are writing non-formatted text, with a minimal background and font (if you are given the choice, customize with a big serif font and a light gray background).

FocusWriter

FocusWriter is a simple, distraction-free writing environment. It utilizes a hide-away interface that you access by moving your mouse to the edges of the screen, allowing the program to have a familiar look and feel to it while still getting out of the way so that you can immerse yourself in your work. It’s available for Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X, and has been translated into many different languages.

TextRoom

It is a free (as in freedom and free beer) full screen rich text editor developed with especially writers in mind.

TextRoom and all other similar editors share one goal: to get you writing right away by providing distraction free environment to your liking, as well as familiar set of keyboard shortcuts to control its behavior. If you don’t feel comfortable already with your editor of choice, you may find it useful.

Features

Export your documents to Google Docs.

MiniFlo mindmapper based on Flo by Ian Reinhart Geiser.

GetAWord random word generator

MusicRoom very basic music player. (Can’t play mp3, but you are good with ogg).

Ommwriter

S.O: Mac OS X, Windows / Free

I have personally used this one, the background and typing sounds are amazing, I wish I could set my own background but the ones that are included don’t disappoint. If your PC isn’t powerful enough, the software will give you lag while writing, thus making your words appear a little bit late. You can re-size your writing area, it has a visible scroll-bar and its own file extension to save your projects.

Ulysses III

S.O: Mac OS X / 44.99 USD

Ulysses III is a brand-new writers’ environment from the Soulmen — the fine folks that brought you Daedalus Touch for iPad. It’s built around a revolutionary engine, dubbed “plain text enhanced”, which combines the very best parts of minimal markup (i.e. Markdown, Textile) with the power, beauty and simplicity of OS X. As a single-library app, Ulysses holds all your texts in just one window. No “Open”, no “Save”, no Finder safari. Full iCloud integration lets you access *everything* from all your Macs.

Export options are vast and flexible: Whether you’re going for RTF, PDF, HTML or ePub, a little style sheet is all you need to create beautiful, customized output. Preview HTML and PDF as you write, or send rough drafts to your favorite word processor for finishing touches. Ulysses III is an adaptive, built-to-grow application. Use it as a sophisticated notepad, create your next couple of novels, or continuously feed your blog. Keep everything neatly organized, or mess around at will.

Q10

O.S: Windows / Free

This is my horse, I use it all the time when I have something no longer than 100 thousand characters (with spaces) without anything else distracting, in a normal background with normal big text (Georgia, dark gray, 25px) and no user interface to bother me. The downside? It has no scroll-bar, you have to use the trackpad or mouse-wheel (or the find feature) to get to a certain point before or after your writing. Apart from that little complain, Q10 is very useful to me and I’d never uninstall it. Works with key-strokes if you want to change the settings, so make sure to press F1 the first time you use it.

WriteMonkey

O.S: Windows / Free

Writemonkey is a Windows zenware* writing application with an extremely stripped down user interface, leaving you alone with your thoughts and your words. It is light, fast and free. With an array of innovative tools under the hood and full Markdown* support, it helps you write better.

iA Writer

O.S: Mac OS X, iOS / 4.99 USD (for each operating system).

As soon as you type the title bar disappears and all you see is the clean typing sheet, distraction-free, ready for your ideas to take shape. With over 600,000 copies sold, Writer has helped students, journalists, and bestselling authors to find more pleasure in working with text.

Features

Convert a Microsoft Word 2007 .docx file to Markdown via drag’n’drop. Convert iA Writer documents to Microsoft Word .docx. Craft your text one sentence at a time in Focus Mode. The surrounding text fades into the background, reducing the temptation to edit.

Effortlessly sync your documents using iCloud and Dropbox. Create folders in iCloud on Mountain Lion to organise your writing. iA Writer for Mac introduced a way to format your documents without taking your hands from the keyboard. Don’t click — write to format.

We’ve finished with the list, it’s time to enjoy downloading these amazing programs and just write, everything that comes to mind! Who knows… maybe you’ll engender something worth reading and being published word-wide :).

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